"Boku dake ga Inai Machi"; A-1 Pictures redemption of the Winter 16' season. In short, I liked it, it was a great watch with nothing much to complain about.
Now the long version: "Boku dake ga Inai Machi" is fun, full of tense and dramatic sequences, and has some scenes unpredictable to me even after watching almost 200 shows.
Starting off with the music. The opening and ending songs were not really the highlight for my tastes (I guess I have shit tastes?) so I often just skipped them. But if I had to compare, I think the ending song is better than the opening.
The art style was consistent and smooth. Character design had a style I have not really seen before but I liked it. It had sharp angles and lines. The color palette is dull and cold which reflects the overall atmosphere of the show. Very well done with the color selection. The art style gave me a "chilled" feeling which was a driving point of keeping me at the edge of my seat during dramatic moments. The animation quality was definitely on point; it flowed well and I can tell extra detail in frames were added for dramatic effects in tense moments or action scenes. Although the art tended to be consistent I felt they did miss out on amplifying one or two pretty tense plot points; nothing to complain about after all this show has accomplished (I mean, this 'is' A-1 Pictures I'm talking about!).
The characters were amazing. As an anime standpoint (no manga), the characters were well written and connected well with me while watching. This connection with the viewer is very important in a show because it allows the viewer to sympathize and side with the characters and their motives. "Boku dake ga Inai Machi" definitely did this well in my opinion. The protagonist and antagonist were both clear and unique. Even though this anime has psychological themes, the characters still felt 'real'. ~golf clap~
The voice actors were well chosen and their worked felt genuine. Then again, the voice acting quality these days are typically very good by standard so this does not stand out compared to the other treasures in this anime. Good job anyway!
The story is what drives the show, many people say. If that is the case, then this is a win for "Boku dake ga Inai Machi". Although personally I think characters is most important, the plot and setting is well done. The atmosphere is carefully textured and the plot was dramatic and stayed dramatic. I was always excited to see the next episode but at the same time I felt each episode was well paced enough that I got my week wait's worth of content. I am overall satisfied with how the story was written and most importantly, 'executed'.
In conclusion, I think A-1 Pictures definitely redeemed themselves. There is no doubt "Boku dake ga Inai Machi" is a quality anime. There has not been anything really as smooth and well told as this show recently, except maybe "Shirobako"; but I digress. Do I have any complaints? Yes (cause who doesn't ever have salt right?), but they are completely negligible after how much "Boku dake ga Inai Machi" has given this season. For being only 12 episodes, it tells a wonderful and drama packed story that had my eyes focused and jaws gawked at the sheer quality of picture and content.
I'm sure some people sprinkled salt all over it but I think either way "Boku dake ga Inai Machi" is worth a try. (The first episode hooked me right off the bat)
10/10, hands down a must watch of the Winter 16' season in my opinion. But if you don't give two shits about my opinion, it's totally 'daijoubu'! Hehehe......kill me.
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